Herbekt e



N0. 6"],486. Patented Sept. 6, I898. H. E. HAWES.

SEWING MACHINE.

(Application filed Feb. 9 1897.)

(NuMudeI-l NITED STATE FFIGEo HERBERT E. HAWES, OF NEW YORK, N. ASSIGNOROF ONE-FOURTH T THOMAS COOPER BYRNES, OF SAME PLACE.

SEWING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 610,486, datedSeptember 6, 1898. Application filed February 9, 1897. Serial No.622,597. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HERBERT E. HAWES, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of the city of New York, (Brooklyn,) county of Kings, andState of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inSewing-Machines, of which the following is a specification, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, in'which- Figure l is a top viewof my improved collapsing stitch-regulator or last in normal position;Fig. 2, a similar view of same collapsed. Fig. 3 is a section at thelineoo 0c of Fig. ,2. Fig. 4 is a view, partly in section and partly inelevation, showing the connection between the said regulator or last andone of the moving parts of the machine whereby power is transmittedthereto. Fig. 5 is a detail, being a top view of the rocker and itsconnections hereinafter described, showing the devices for securingadjustability.

The object of my invention is to provide means in a sewingmachinewhereby the length of the thread comprising each stitch may be regulatedand controlled, thereby producing at will a tighter or looser seam andavoiding the puckering and drawing of the material sewed. I attain thisobject by introducing into the stitch at the place of its formation anadjustable stitch-regulator or last, across and around which the threadis laid and tightened during the formation of the stitch, said regulatoror last being so constructed and actuated as to insure its great estdesired expansion at the time of the tightening or completion of thestitch and its collapse during the interval when the goods are being fedforward in the progress of the sewing, thus accomplishing the uniformregulation of the length of thread comprised in each stitch, thesubsequent withdrawal of the stitch from said'regulator with the leastpossible resistance as the goods 'are fed forward, and thecons'equent'avoidance of puckering or distortion of the seam or goods.

Briefly stated',my invention consists,among other things, .in regulatingthe length of thread in each stitch and supporting the seam againstundue tightening byforming it around a normally open or expandedregulator or last, which is subsequently collapsed when its supportceases to be necessary, and the extent of the expansion of which can bevaried and regulated according to the will of the operator. I

My invention is especially adapted to be useful in sewing together theabutting edges of goods; but it may also be used in any other case inwhich it isdesired to avoid undue tightening of the stitch andconsequent puckering or unevenness of seam, and also particularly incases in which the regulation and securing of a predetermined anduniform length of thread in each stitch is desirable as, for instance,in embroidery and the like.

My invention may be applied to any style of sewing-machine with merelysuch adaptation in location and in connection with and relation to themoving parts as will readily occur to any person skilled in the art.

The drawings show the invention applied to one of that class of machineswhich employ two needles for seaming'together the abutting edges of twopieces of goods lying in the same plane, the goods being fed so as tokeep the line of junction centrally between the two needles and thethread underneath the goods manipulated by the use of suitable loopers,so as to assist in the formation of the stitch, 850., as will be readilyunderstood, in which case the tension on the threads, combined with thefeed, operates often to unduly and unevenly tighten the stitches, soas'to produce puckering in the goods along the line of the-seam.

In the drawings, a represents the cloth-"plate of the sewing machine.

b b are two members which cooperate to make up the last orstitch-supporter proper. These are by the pivot-screws f g secured tothe cloth-plate within a suitably-shaped recess or depression in thelatter, the edge of which is indicated by m m 'm. The members I) barefree to turn upon said pivot-screws,

and their upper surfaces are preferably flush with that ofthecloth-plate, a portion of which is entirely removed ba'ck'of the needles0 cl, (shown in cross-section, Fig. 4,) so as to present an open spacey; The members I) b are, as shown in the drawings, capable of be-' ingturned on their pivot-screws a certain distance, so that the extremitiesof their back wardly-projecting arms or extensions Z Z are separatedfrom each other, as shown in Fig. 1, and the outside edges brought intoproximity to the needles. While in this position that part of the stitchformed under the goods by carrying the thread or threads crosswise ofthe line of juncture of the goods or otherwise will be pulledby thecombined effect of the threadcontrolling mechanisms and other relatedparts against the temporarily unyielding support and regulation affordedby the open arms Z Z. On the other hand, when'the members b b arerotated upon their pivot-screws, so as to bring them into the positionshown in Fig. 2, in which they are closed against each other, theirsupport is withdrawn from the stitch and they present no resistance orimpediment to the forward feed of the goods in the direction indicatedby the arrow, Fig. 1.

The alternate automatic expansion and collapse of the arms Z Z maybeconveniently accomplished by means of a vertical rod e, passing througha slot 6 in the cloth-plate, so as to project thereunder, as shown inFig. 3, and fitted to corresponding recesses in the members b b, whichthus partly embrace said rod. The slot in the cloth-plate issufficiently wide to freely admit the passage of the rod andsufficiently long in the direction of the line of feed to permitareciprocation or stroke backward and forward on the part of ,the rodsufficiently extended to cause the members I) b, with their arm s Z Z,to take at the extremes of the stroke the respective positions shown atFigs. 1 and 2z'. e., expanded or collapsed. The backward-and-forwardmovement of the pin e and the alternate expansion and collapse of thearms Z l may be effected in any convenient way, it being only necessaryto so connect the said pin with such moving part of the sewing-machineas to insure its alternate backward-and-forward movement at the propertime. I have illustrated in the drawings onemethodofsuchconnection.(SeeFig. 4, in which the cloth-plate a of the machine is shown insection, taken on the line ,2 z of Fig. 2.) The member I) is shown inelevation, likewise the pin e, the member I) being removed for thepurpose of clearness of illustration.

The pin 6 is connected with the rod 6, (shown broken away in thecenter,) of any convenient length, according to requirement. The saidrod 6 is in turn pivotally connected at its opposite extremity with thetwo-armed rocker i, which is sleeved and oscillates upon a verticalshaft 0, which rests in bearings or steps at both upper and lower ends.The rocker '5 is provided in one of its arms with a curved slot j, whichis perferably concentric with pin 6 when its members are in theircollapsed position and are drawn from 6 through center of slot j,cutting center of shaft 0. Through this slot passes a threaded pin it,carried by and pivoted in the connecting-rod c and secured in positionat the proper time by screw-nutp. The other arm of the rocker?) isprovided with a roller-stud 2' and a barrelshaped roller 1 operatingwithin a peripheral groove in the cam 69, the said groove being soshaped, as will be readily understood, as to secure the desired movementin the pin e, the cam 69, connected with the source of power, operatingthe machine in any convenient manner, so as to be rotated thereby.

I accomplish the regulation of the length of thread tightened about mylast or regulator in the formation of the stitch by loosening the nut19', adjusting the pin n to the required position in the slot j, andsecuring it in that position by screwing down the nut 19 into place. Bythis means the length of the stroke or movement of the pin 6 may beregulated as desired and the extent of the-separation of the arms H atthe length of the stroke be regulated accordingly, whereby, as will bereadily understood, the length of the thread drawn around the arms Z Zduring the formation of each stitch will be gaged and thus preserveduniform during the sewing until a new adjustment is made.

The operation of my device is therefore as follows: On the needlesapproaching the goods the members of my last or regulator are rotated ontheir screw-pivots, so as to expand their arms ZZ relatively to eachother and are held in this position at the proper time while the needlesare in the goods and until the stitch has been tightened. After thewithdrawal of the needles from the goods and upon the feed forward ofthe latter for another stitch the arms Z Z are collapsed relatively toeach other by the continued action of the cam transferred, as aforesaid,to'the rod c, whereby the latter is moved, causing the members 17 b torock upon their pivotscrews in a contrary direction, and so onindefinitely, the last performing its function of support andregulation'and in turn at the proper moment ceasing to do this andassuming a shape which will present the least (in fact, practically no)interference with and resistance to the forward movement of the goods bythe feed mechanism of the machine.

It will be understood that I do not confine myself to the precise formof alternate collapsing and expanding devices illustrated and described.It is manifest that the beneficial results of my invention might beobtained by holding one member stationary and causing the other to movetoward and from it, also that the form and direction of motion of thearms and members might be varied without departing from my invention.

In the drawings I have for the purpose of greater clearness shown themembers I) b considerably thicker in proportion to the clothplate a andother parts than will probably be 'found advantageous in ordinary use,the

thickness of these members being of course regulated according to thethickness of the cloth or material and the degree of tightness requiredin the seam.

WVhat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is thefollowing, viz:

1. In a sewing-machine the combination with stitch-forming andcloth-feeding mechanisms of a stitch-regulator or last consisting ofmembers coacting to expand such regulator or last While there is tensionor pull upon the thread during the making of the stitch and to collapseit thereafter and during the interval while the goods sewed are beingfed and means to actuate said members, substantially as and for thepurposes described.

2. In a sewing-machine the combination with stitch-forming andcloth-feeding mechanisms of astitoh-regulator or last consisting of twoindependently-rocking members having arms across and about which whenex-,

panded the thread or threads are tightened in forming the stitches, andmeans for rocking into said expanded position and alternately rocking inthe opposite direction so as to draw together or collapse said armsduring feed in tervals, and back again in the opposite direction toreexpand for another stitch, substantially as and for the purposesdescribed.

3. In a sewing-machine the combination with stitch-forming andcloth-feeding mechanisms of a stitch-regulator or last consisting of tworocking members turning in one di rection to expand and in the oppositedirection to collapse, an actuating-pin engaging with said members to sorock them, and means for reciprocating said actuating pin, substantiallyas and for the purposes described.

4. In a sewing-machine the combination with stitch-forming andcloth-feeding mechanisms of'a stitch-regulator or last consisting of twomembers, each rocking in opposite directions, an actuating-rod engagingtherewith, a two-armed rocker and means for con necting said rocker withsaid reciprocating rod and with a properly-moving part of the mechanismof said sewing-machine, substantially as and for the purposes described.

5. In a sewing-machine the combination with stitch-forming andcloth-feeding mechanisms of a stitch-regulator or last consisting ofmembers coaoting to alternately expand and collapse said last, areciprocating pin directly actuating said members, a two-armed rockerconnected to said pin by a connectingrod, an adjustable connectionbetween said connecting-rod and one of the arms of said rocker and meansfor actuating aforesaid parts, substantially as and for the purposesdescribed.

6. In a sewing-machine the combination with stitch-forming andcloth-feeding mech-,

anisms of stitch-supporter composed of pivoted members b 6', pin e,connecting-rod e, rocker i, having slot j, pin n, nut 19', stud istud-roller 2' and grooved cam 69, substantially as and for the purposesdescribed.

7. In a sewing-machine the combination with stitch-forming andcloth-feeding mechanisms of an adjustable alternately expanding andcollapsing last, adapted to receive at the time of stitch formation, thethread comprising each stitch, and to limit the size and tightness towhich each stitch is drawn at completion and to collapse during feedintervals, and means for actuating said last, substantially as and forthe purposes described.

Dated New York, N. Y., February 8, 1897.

V 4 HERBERT E. HAWES.

Witnesses:

FRANCIS WHITE PRosoHE, T. F. Knnon.

